Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Snoop Dogg is Born Calvin Broadus on October 20, 1971, in Long Beach, California, Snoop Dogg got his nickname from his mother because she thought he looked like the character in the Peanuts cartoon. His first album, Doggystyle (1993), climbed its way to the No. 1 spot on Billboard's hip-hop and Top 200 charts, and his music and trouble with the law have kept him in the headlines ever since. In early 2012, Snoop announced that he was working for the first time on an all-reggae album, Reincarnation. Later in 2012, he announced that, in conjunction with his reggae project, he was dropping "Dogg" from his name and becoming "Snoop Lion." (He later returned to his old moniker.) He has the distinction for having the most Grammy nominations of any music artist— 17 to date — but never having won one.

Fans of the Comedy Central Roasts were pleasantly surprised at Snoop's standout performances at several of the Roasts. In particular, they noted his excellent comedic timing, his ability to improvise, and writing almost all of his own jokes, as well as being able to take a joke and the good-natured (albeit low-brow) ribbing at his expense from others on the dais.

 He was born as Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. on October 20, 1971, in Long Beach, California, to Vernall Varnado, a Vietnam veteran, singer, and mail carrier, and his wife, Beverly Broadus. But Vernall left the family soon after Calvin’s birth and thus Calvin was named after his stepfather, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Sr.
 From an early age, he had a keen interest in singing, rapping and playing piano. In 1989, he graduated from the Long Beach Polytechnic High School.
 Shortly after graduating from high school, he was arrested after being found in possession of drugs and was frequently in and out of the prison for the next three years.
 During this period, he and his cousins recorded homemade tapes, calling their group ‘213’. One of his early solo freestyles over En Vogue's “Hold On” was heard by the influential producer Dr. Dre, who then invited him to an audition.

http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/snoop-dogg-2872.php 




Sunday, February 19, 2017

Sarah Reich



Sarah Reich
Tap Dancer

Growing up tap dancing, I have taken classes from numerous professional tappers. The very first time I took a class from Sarah was about four years ago. Not only is she extremely kind and welcoming, but she is truly talented at what she does. Her musicality and rhythms are mesmerizing, and her personality shines on stage. She has done a lot of work with Chloe Arnold's Syncopated Ladies, and most recently been on tour with the group Postmodern Jukebox (most known for their Youtube videos). Sarah's technical skills as a tapper are simply impeccable  and she is someone that I look to for inspiration as a tapper myself. 


Sources

This site includes all of Sarah's professional tap experiences. This includes her own company, Tap Music Project. More recently, Sarah has been teaching with (professional tapper) Melinda Sullivan as the Sole Sisters.

On this website you will be able to find all of the basic information on Sarah Reich. This includes general information like her birthday, birth place, as well as professional experiences and teaching locations. You will also find links to her social media sites.

This is Sarah Reich's official website. This is the most informative source on Sarah, with numerous photos, videos, performance history, and upcoming dates. There is also a lot of information about her history and what role she plays in the tap community.


Joey Alexander



             Having taught himself piano by age 6, Joey Alexander is the very definition of a prodigy. Joey Alexander, a young boy originally from Bali, made his debut in the United States at age 10- at which time his jazz compositions and stellar piano skills had flexed nationwide. I had heard his arrangement of "My Favorite Things" in a Starbucks, and was convinced it had been performed by a proficient pianist of at least middle age. When I learned that the boy was 11 at the time of my hearing his work, I became an instant fan. His story in itself is inspirational, but his music is in another league. He has mastered the art of jazz improvisation, which at my age I still
struggle with greatly. Overall, Joey Alexander has helped motivate me to become a better musician.


  • http://joeyalexandermusic.com/about/

This is Joey Alexander's website, which includes his biography, along with music samples and tour dates for his live performances.


  • https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/13/arts/music/joey-alexander-an-11-year-old-jazz-sensation-who-hardly-clears-the-pianos-sightlines.html?_r=0

This article was posted in 2015, when Alexander was only 11 years old and just making his debut in the United States.


  • http://time.com/collection-post/4518781/joey-alexander-next-generation-leaders/
This article was posted when Alexander was 13 years old, and was nominated for a grammy with his album, "My Favorite Things". In this article, he charmingly insists that he is not a genius or a prodigy, he only wants others to enjoy his music.



Gustav Klimt

                                        Gustav Klimt 

 Gustav Klimt is arguably known to be one of the greatest painters of the twentieth century. Largely influenced by Japanese art, Klimt was born in Austria and is synonymous with his erotic portrayls of the female body. He was closely involved with the Vienna Secession movement, which is evident within his work, and was often criticized for his "promiscuous" depiction of women. His work included paintings, drawings, and murals, all of which often incorporated landscapes. Klimt is most well known for his "golden phase." During this time, he created some of his most well known works, such as "The Kiss", and gained much financial success. Gustav was known to be a simple man who enjoyed the little things in life. His art and family were said to be his main priorities. Klimt has been an inspiration to me as an artist since I was a young girl. He has influenced much of my own art throughout the years. The composition of his pieces are incredible, and the colors are truly beautiful. I continue to connect and relate to his work on a personal level, no matter how old I get. 

Sources 
  • http://www.klimt.com
This is a gallery of Klimt's work, including paintings and drawings, along with a brief history of the artist. 
  • http://www.klimtgallery.org/biography.html
This source is an in depth biography of the artist, Gustav Klimt.

  • http://www.theartstory.org/artist-klimt-gustav.htm
This source consists of more detailed biographical information on Klimt, including some of his key ideas and influences as an artist. 


   "The Kiss" 
By: Gustav Klimt
1907-1908 

The Head and the Heart


The head and the Heart is an indie folk music band that I enjoy listening to on any day of the week. This band had inspired me to pick up a guitar and learn how to play it over the past couples of years because of their beautiful melodies and compelling song lyrics. The song of theirs that really hits home to me is called “Rivers and Roads.” The song reminds me to cherish the good moments that I have with friends because you never know when those moments will be gone. The Head and the Heart group was formed in Seattle, Washington after all of the band members moved there from various locations around the country and they been making music since 2009.


http://www.theheadandtheheart.com/splash?ref=https://www.google.com/ This is a link to the Head and the Heart’s official website. There you will find one of their latest songs and a list of upcoming concerts.

https://www.subpop.com/artists/the_head_and_the_heart This website has an article which explains how they got inspired to come up with the song lyrics.


 http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/the-head-and-the-heart-on-battling-addiction-embracing-pop-w441825 This website contains an article about one of their key band members Josiah, who is battling addiction and how its really different and weird to continue make music without him

Janis Joplin - My Hero





What Janis Joplin Means      To Me. 

After spending a lazy Sunday flipping through Netflix documentaries I stopped on a title with a women's soulful smile gleaming across the cover. The smile drew me in, and Janis' story made me love her. What made me so infatuated with Janis was she wasn't afraid to be herself. From being an outcast in high school, to being the lead singer in an all boys band during a time when girls were expected to be proper housewives; Janis never followed the norm. There is much beauty in Janis' unwillingness to conform as she set out to underground Blue's clubs as a teenager. Janis' career was so respectable because it was not built off of looks and glamour, but true talent and rigidness that made this outstanding women so unique. Janis was not going to settle being a man's housewife because she WAS THE MAN. She drank like a man, took her drugs like a man, and she swore like a man without hesitation on who she was offending. I admire her boldness and hope that one day I can acquire the kind of sexiness Janis acquired through stepping over boundaries and giving the finger to anyone who told her she couldn't do something. Somehow she still managed to keep a big and soft heart that shown through her big personality and gleaming smile. She strode through life with a heavy foot and a booming love for everyone that crossed her path. Janis is hope to me.


Articles Revealing Janis: 
The sixties version of a women did not stretch past a housewife and proper lady for substance, and Janis did not want any part of that. Janis trail blazed a path into a "man's world" armed with thick skin and a bold personality that allowed her to hang with the boys. But behind Janis's though exterior was a sad and lonely heart that Janis could not fill. 






"You look at the other people through you tears 
It's sad, so sad to be alone..." - Song, So Sad To Be Alone 
Janis did drugs to fill a space in heart. Her drug addiction and dance with heroin was because of the dragging loneliness that she felt. She would sing to a crowd of thousands of people then go home alone, the drugs lay with her at night. 



"To be true to myself, to be the person that was on the inside of me, and not play games.
That's what I am trying to do mostly in the whole world, 
Is to not bullshit myself, 
And not bullshit anyone else." 
 - Janis Joplin 
A small glimpse into the trail blazer Janis was for her time; getting a tattoo was a very taboo thing to do in the sixties, especially for a women. 




"Playing something soft while Bobby sang the blues..." - Song, Me and Bobby McGee

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Blue Stahli

(Public profile picture from http://www.methodhousestudios.com/writer/bret-blue-stahli/)

Blue Stahli is technically the name of the musical project under which Bret Autrey releases music, but 'Blue Stahli' is functionally a pseudonym for the artist himself. While his cult-following is rather small, his music is present in many popular games, TV shows, and films, including but not limited to Dead Rising 2American Horror Story, and X-Men: Days of Future Past.

His personal web page includes information about himself, his credits, as well as links to the FIXT store; FIXT is the label that publishes his music and sells merchandise. FIXT is owned and operated by Klayton.

While much of his music is instrumental, a number of his lyrical songs are commentaries on society and the media. Personal favorites include:

ULTRAnumb:
His most popular song, it discusses the modern problems of instant gratification, limitless choices, and how they lead to an over-saturated experience leaving you "ULTRAnumb", requiring evermore extreme experiences to feel the same addiction high. The link is to the music video, which I feel helps to explain the music. Except the bit with the restaurant, I'm pretty sure that's an inside joke.

Shoot Em Up:
This song attacks the media for feeding the infamy of mass shooters, giving them their moment of celebrity status and encouraging copycats to become mass shooters for the same reason. This is known as "Media Contagion", a topic upon which a number of studies have been published investigating the link.

I particularly enjoy those songs of his that bring up important issues that our culture faces. Art is a great way of communicating important topics and ideas, and it is for this reason I appreciate his music beyond simply enjoying it. The medium of music allows Bret to communicate emotion alongside the meaning of his lyrics, giving the listeners a more visceral understanding of the song.

Leonardo DiCaprio

4088776857_5be3076606_o.jpg
For me, Leonardo DiCaprio has always been an inspiration and someone I admired from a very young age. Growing up and watching him on T.V and all of his award winning films was always something my family and I loved to do. Furthermore, whenever a film with him in it came out my family would all come together to watch it and it was one of my favorite things to do and some of my favorite memories. DiCaprio is known by the public for his edgy and controversial roles, which truly makes him an actor that really stands out. Even more, he did not just stop at acting, he from there went on and used his popularity and success to help make the world a better place. By making several speeches, creating a foundation and donating money to spread awareness of the environmental issues in our world today demonstrates some of the few accomplishments he has made in his lifetime and is the main reason I chose to write about him today.


1)This website that I chose demonstrates the life and biography of Leonardo DiCaprio, including when he was born, his acting career, environmental involvements and even his personal life. 
2) This next article I included focused more on what Leonardo Dicaprio has accomplished as an environmental activist and how he used his success and intelligence in film making to spread awareness to the world about the issues evolving today.
3) Lastly this is one of my favorite articles, because it discussed Leonardo DiCaprio’s long and well deserved wait to finally win an Oscar. Dicaprio received his first Oscar for the best actor in the amazing movie “The Revenant” which was about a man’s relationship to the natural world.


     

Lorde

Lorde


Lorde is a singer/songwriter who uses her music as a platform to discuss her unhappiness with mainstream media. I find her music compelling for several reasons. The lyrics she writes are often not literal. They are written in the form of poetry, which lets the listener interpret them individually. All of her music has interesting beats that make it easy to listen to in different environments, since it is not too slow or too fast paced. I think the main reason that I appreciate her as an artist is her careless nature. She writes about what she wants, wears what she wants, and promotes an accepting social nature. 


This is Lorde's official website, which links fans to her music, merchandise, and social media accounts. This is her official communication and allows people to keep in the know about what she has done so far and what to expect next from her. 


This website gives viewers basic information about Lorde as an artist as well as access to all of her music. When you click on each song, it gives background information about them and provides the lyrics as well.


This website gives many resources when it comes to music. On Lorde's page you can find her most popular songs, albums, pictures, tour dates, and more. It also allows public comments, so you can see what others are saying about her music
.

Luciano Pavarotti


Luciano Pavarotti is the artist I love the most. I own his limited edition CDs and DVDs. When I started performing operas as a tenor 5 years ago, I wanted to know who is the best tenor in the world. I soon found that Luciano had the most beautiful voice with the best singing techniques. He was not only the best opera singer but the best in many other genres as well. At his late years, he was very successful in cross-over singing. He performed with many pop singers like Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey with great success. In my opinion, no one has influenced both classic and pop music like Pavarotti. He is my role model in any kind of singing I do.



www.lucianopavarotti.com/  
This is the official Luciano Pavarotti Website. There are lots of information about him 
including biography, discography and his performances. From the News section of 
the website, we can still find events about him.

http://classicalmusic.about.com/od/opera/qt/Luciano-Pavarotti-Songs.htm
This website features a list of his popular aria and more information about him. 

http://www.jango.com/music/Luciano+Pavarotti
This website offers some free music and videos of Pavarotti. I recommend you to try 
listening to his Caro Mio Ben!

Thursday, February 16, 2017

J. Cole

J. Cole 













For this assignment I decided to post about is Jermaine Cole or J. Cole. Cole is a very inspirational Hip/hop artist who was born in Germany but was raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina. His mother raised him on her own for the most part. He attended St. Johns university on an academic scholarship where he really started as a rapper. Cole eventually received a call from Jay-z to appear as a feature on his album and later would be the first artist signed to Jay-z's Roc Nation label. I am inspired by Cole because of how he really pushes people to be true to themselves and the meaning and emotion he puts behind each song and album. In many songs he sings from other peoples perspective as well as his own and you can really connect emotionally. What inspires me most about Cole is how, when listening to an album, he really makes you think deeply about the personal and world issues he addresses with amazing lyricism.


http://www.billboard.com/artist/276541/j-cole/biography This link gives you a bit of the biography that I explained above but goes deeper into his career timeline and discography. This is a good link if you want a short review of his career until present.

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/01/141910346/j-cole-an-upstart-rapper-speaks-for-himself This link is a bit more biography on him more on a personal level. It talks about his upbringing with his family and how he and Jay z came together and is included with many quotes from Cole himself.

https://www.discogs.com/artist/750828-J-Cole This last link gives a short bio on Cole and lists the discography from his first tape in 2007 to present. There are many albums and singles and comments at the bottom of the page of people speaking their minds on the music.

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Grace Kelly



For this blog post assignment, I chose to focus on one of my favorite actresses Grace Kelly (November 12, 1929- September 14, 1982). Grace was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but married Rainer III Prince of Monaco on April 18, 1956. Their wedding was dubbed the “Wedding of the Century” and attracted many of Grace’s fans and the press. Grace gave up her acting career before her marriage so she could focus on her royal duties as Princess of Monaco. She left a wonderful legacy after her premature death, a legacy of style, grace, and poise. These traits were evident during her acting career, and are present in the characters she plays in some of her films. Grace's fabulous fashion sense and elegance inspire me today, and are reminiscent of bygone era of elegant glamour. 

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000038/bio This link takes a blog reader to Grace Kelly's biography on IMBD.com. The biography gives some information on her acting career, but nothing too detailed. There is some fun trivia questions about Grace's life (answers provided), and inspiring quotes Grace said herself.

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/grace_kelly/ This link to Rotten Tomatoes, provides a blog reader with another Grace Kelly biography. This biography is more detailed however, providing more in depth information about Grace's acting career. 

http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2010/05/grace-kelly-201005

This "Vanity Fair" article highlight Grace's classically elegant style, and how her style ultimately propelled Grace into Hollywood acting career.